and a very good thursday morning. coming up on "early today," a standoff with a deranged gunman holding a 3-year-old hostage is now in its second day. we've dot the latest details. temperatures, warm and cold colliding and bizarre january storms. president obama pushes hard on gun control and immigration reform, plus the passing of 'american icon and one of the biggest adrenaline rushes anywhere. "early today" right now. >> announcer: this is "early today" for thursday, january 31st, 2013. and a very good morning for you, i'm richard lui in for mara

schiavocampo. we start with a hostage standoff in alabama involving a 5-year-old and a suspected killer. a police investigation identifies him as 65-year-old jimmy lee dykes. the two are holed up in an underground bunker or tornado shelter. police are able to get medicine to the young boy. but officials aren't saying much about communications. they're communicating through a pvc pipe. the gunman bored the school bus in midland city. and then killed the bus driver and took the young hostage. a ferocious storm system raked its way through the country. it's making its way north. at least two people have lost their lives in georgia and tennessee. many have lost their homes and tens of thousands were left without power. nbc's kurt gregory has more. >> reporter: wicked winds whipped through charlotte, north carolina, as rain drenched the queen city, all a part of the

nasty storm system marching across the southeast on wednesday. that same system spawned a massive funnel cloud in adairsville, georgia. 100 people were at work when the twister took aim on this plant. thankfully, all were safe. in tennessee, the national weather service confirmed four tornadoes touched down. one man was killed by a falling tree. and in kentucky, two people were injured when another confirmed tornado blew a trailer off its foundation. kurt gregory, nbc news. we'll have more on that devastating weather and the latest in terms of weather from nbc's bill karins coming up. the debate over gun control is taking place across the country and yesterday it was heard from the nation's capital to newtown, connecticut, the town that lost 26 lives. last night, moving testimony from a parent of one of those

victims. >> we lost our son benjamin the morning of december 14th. to an unstable suicidal individual who had access to a weapon that has no place in a home. >> earlier in the day, president obama met with former arizona congresswoman gabby giffords, a victim of gun violence herself. giffords was in town to lend her voice to guns on capitol hill. the first since the newtown, massacre. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more. >> reporter: it's a distant memory said husband mark kelly, yet gabby giffords halting words. >> too many children. >> reporter: here as a survivor of the tucson assassination attempt that left her partially blind and partially paralyzed. >> you must act.

be bold. be courageous. >> reporter: giffords and kelly, both gun owners, want congress to expand background checks to gun shows and private sales to make it harder for criminals and the mentally ill to get weapons. >> my wife would not be sitting in this seat, she would not have been sitting here today, if we have stronger background checks. >> reporter: of all the gun-related ideas on the table, democrats believe universal background checks have the best chance politically. >> we'll stop them from the original purchase. you missed that point completely. i think it's basic. >> senator, i think you missed it. >> in order. >> reporter: the nra said adding new laws would hit ordinary stricken citizens not criminals. this is the year for immigration reform. that's president obama's hope he laid out his platform with our sister spanish network

telemundo. >> we know what's needed when it comes to border security. we know what's needed dealing with employers who may unlawfully hire undocumented workers. we know what the pathway to citizenship looks like abdomen what the criteria should be. so, really the issue here is not so much technical, as political. i'd like to see it done in the first half of the year. hope remains for the search of a missing air force pilot off the coast of italy today. captain lucas guntner disappeared three days ago during a nighttime mission. his wife describes him as a self-reliant outdoorsman. and if anybody could survive this, lucas could. the family remains hopeful because among the debris found so far they say there was evidence he ejected. developing stories to keep an eye on for you. will he or won't he get the nod? hoping to become the next secretary of defense, former

senator chuck hagel answers tough questions from the senate armed services commit. the white house is preparing carefully. and this afternoon, the senate decides whether to raise the debt ceiling for the next few months. in the bill, an interesting provision that would hold the senators' pay if they failed by february 15th. >> the midwest is trying to dig out. what else you got? and there's more. >> wait till you see the windchills in north dakota this morning. ugly. let's start with the bad weather. over 500 reports of severe weather over the last 48 hours. now the high winds and maybe even a quick rumble of thunder is trying to roll through new jersey and head up into new england. the storms are flying, that's the good news. baltimore, maryland, washington, d.c., you're done with the heavier rains. you'll see the line through new jersey, it's heading right over top of new york city and up into connecticut and the hudson valley. this is that enhanced line here

as it moves to the north. and this is just a huge system, and we're going to continue to see the winds cranking for the next 24 to 48 hours over the eastern seaboard. winds are pretty light, but boston, wind gusts of 49, hartford, 41. the windchill in roland, north dakota is minus 49. i know they canceled some schools in this region. mean us in 30 to 40 all across the region today. the southeast, i know you had the tornadoes today in north georgia. also tennessee, today's day of cleanup with sunshine. still it will be windy but dry. that's a look at your national forecast. now, here's a look outside your window. >> boston, massachusetts today, very warm, rainy this morning then it will be windy. the cold front will go through. the rains will stop but the rains will continue. that's the bottom line for all of new england. very difficult at the airports as you'd expect. a lot of people flying just

across the country talking about how bad the turbulence was everywhere. >> nbc meteorologist bill karins earning his paycheck. tempers are rising after the military strike in syria and hezbollah. plus, she performed at the inauguration now she's another victim of chicago's growing murder rate. and police want answers now. "early today" is back in two minutes.

and welcome back. here are some other stories making news this morning. israel launched a rare strike inside syria. u.s. officials believe a targeted convoy bound for hezbollah militants in lebanon. massachusetts senator john kerry gave a sometimes emotional good-bye speech to colleagues. >> standing here at this desk that once belonged -- at this

desk that once belonged to president kennedy and ted kennedy. i can't help but be reminded that even our nation's greatest leaders and all the rest of us are merely temporary workers. >> kerry will be sworn in friday as the next secretary of state. white house spokesman jay carney said the president is praying for 15-year-old hadiya pendleton gunned down on tuesday. pendleton had performed with her high school band at last week's inauguration. a shocking revelation involving the notre dame football player manti te'o after talking to ronaiah sue soap poe was on the "today" show. >> was this a romantic relationship with you the answer

was there. are you therefore gay, he said, well, if you put it that way, yes. >> dr. phil told him the hopester. surfing a 100-foot wave off the coast of portugal. experts to looking to confirm the size of that wave. the tug-of-war between bulls and bears. mastercard and u.p.s. could set the tone ahead of the first jobs report of tlirn. we'll see how facebook fares after news that mobile ad revenue climbed but overall income tumbled 79%. after the bell, chip maker qualcomm wowed investors with its bullish earnings. electronic arts ticked lower due to a slump in sales in gaming consoles. meanwhile, investors soured on the release of two new

blackberrys wednesday sending the company's stock spiraling. research in motion also announced it's finally changing its name to blackberry. the parent of "people" and "sports illustrated" is planning to lay off 500 people. walmart has limited ammo sales to three boxes per customer per day. a startling new report to show that equifax has gathered up the salary information of more than a third of u.s. workers and sold some of it to debt collectors and financial agencies. is twitter taking over the super bowl? this year, half the super bowl ads will include hash tags in their game time spots. that's up from a handful of just a year. abdomen dolce & gabbana will start selling perfume for babies. the alcohol-free fragrance for

your little bundle will have notes of citrus, honey and melon. the most famous parents at this year's super bowl. sports straight ahead. we'll tell you what nasa was up to last night with its latest launch. and take a look at this controversial quilt. you're watching "early today."

and welcome back. it was a spectacular liftoff.

nas da launched a had you high-tech satellite into orbit from cape ka nav value, florida. the new equipment will improve communication with the international space station and relay images. a quilt displaying a photograph of a lynched african-american woman is generating strong emotions with visitors at an indianapolis library. >> i get people out here with all kinds of races and breeds. treating me bad because of stuff like this. >> i know it can be painful for some people. i know some people are angry. some people cry. >> the quilt is part of a collection of pieces that will be displayed through february and march. controversy is brewing after school officials fired starter pifltles during an emergency drill outside of chicago. some people were alarmed by the pistols to prepare people. >> i don't think we have to make it normal to have a simulated shooting in schools because then it just makes more normal for

high schools to accept these things. and had high school students are defending their teacher. kelly mckinney after officials discovered her bear twitter page which features half naked pictures about drug usage. the college students designed t-shirts to show the support of their teacher. in college basketball, duke got 32 points against mason plumlee. the blew devils hold on to the visibility story there. a little controversy with san francisco 49ers quarterback chris tull la ver was sent to apologize saying that gay players would not be welcome in the locker room. jackie and jack harbaugh, the parents of two super bowl coaches talked with reporters about their sons facing each other. >> we're so excited for john and jim to be in this situation.

but we're also really are excited for the players and their families. >> the true victory and the agony and defeat. and on sunday night, we're going to experience both of those great emotions. and our thoughts will be with the one that comes up a little short. >> all right. the, the harbaughs say their sons coaching is part of a great journey. and on the google page, you'll see the image of jackie robinson who broke the barrier in baseball. today is the anniversary of his death. the georgia native would have been 94 years old. what did tyler perry do to hurt oprah winfrey's back. plus, the san diego back has their hands full, in fact, three sets of hands to check out this little guy's heart, feet, lungs.

you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today." the most dangerous weather this morning. if you're heading out the door to school or anywhere is going to be up in new england. the strongest winds are right on top of new york city and long island and also coastal connecticut. they're going to shift into connecticut, massachusetts, boston as we go through the morning commute. the next two or three hours. by 8:00 a.m., all the strongest winds from the front should be gone. behind it, a lot of cold air.

we have dangerous windchill warnings with windchill warnings in minnesota, and minnesota, a high of 2 today, that's it. frigid air while the east coast will see a return to winter. >> thanks a lot, bill. oprah's 59th birthday was a little more thankful thanks to tyler perry. oprah said he sent her a flower arrangement so large she pulled her back trying to lift it. patty andrews of the andrew sisters has died at the age of 94. remember that song. that trio was best known for that song "boogie woogie bugle boy of company b." rihanna is back with chris brown. she said, quote, it's different now, we don't have those types of arguments now, end quote. for the first time in 36

years, barbra streisand will be performing at the academy awards. no word on what streisand will be singing just yet. she'll be in good company with norah jones as well. and lindsay lohan arrived in a black hummer for her probation hearing with a black plate sporting the tag "i'mtrying." everything is a character when it comes to this story. >> the discount rack -- >> exactly. >> maybe it seemed like he wanted publicity and he's getting it. >> los angeles, right? i'm richard lui. this is "early today." this, your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. you're on timeout leo!

some things won't last 25 years. ah! woof! some things will.

some things won't last 25 years. ah! woof! some things will. the storms may be moving out this hour, but you could be in for a rough commute after a night of heavy rain. today everything from big puddles to roads blocked off and under water. our in-depth coverage will get you up to speed before you head out the door. good morning, everyone, i'm aaron gilchrest. >> i'm eun yang. welcome to "news4 today" for this thursday, january 31, 2013. power crews are out right now working through the rain to get the lights back on for thousands in the dark. pepco is reporting the most outages, about 5,500, mostly those in the district. dominion has more than 1,300 without power, down from more than 4,000 about eight hours ago.

and bge tells us they have about 350 outages between anne arundel and prince george's counties. >> you could see lots of roads closed by high water today. flash flood watches and warnings have just been lifted or will be in about 0 seconds across the region. this car in the middle of new cut road in germantown after a nearby creek overflowed. firefighter pulled the driver out of the car, but tow trucks won't be able to remove the car until the water goes down. we're seeing major damage and bigger problems across the south this morning. the same storm left a path of destruction spawning 13 confirmed tornadoes in eight states. georgia looks to be hit the hardest. a huge tornado there caught on video tore through the town damaging dozen of homes, flattening part of a plant, and killing one person. >> we have about a two-mile might have long path, maybe a quarter of a mile wide. angled through town. i'm hearing from folks that have been here all their lives, they've never seen anything this bad. >> ane